The I am Sam band kicked things off with their mix of dirty attitude and punk pop, paying a massive homage to the recent success of Be Your Own PET and the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s. This, although being a tight performance, is good but nothing special. It’s never long before their songs end up in the same noisy mess, crooned over with Karen O - esque vocals, despite having a promising start. Along with this, the band’s sound is riddled with a very suspect bass guitar sound, which is some cases provides the ‘dirty attitude’ of the music, is others just sounds awful and distracting. This bass guitar is much like the band’s set as a whole: inconsistent but at times excellent.

Jeniferever however turn things around instantly; only needing to play the opening chords of new single ‘The Sound of Beating Wings’. Their set is only four songs long, all from the ‘Choose a Bright Morning’ album, but all work brilliantly as the Swedish ethereal five-piece effortlessly show why they are one of the most talked about bands right now. They create a beautiful atmosphere and sustain it through the set without ever losing pace; while vocalist Kristofer Jönson looks so fragile he could be easily snapped in two. What’s interesting about this band is their image; they look like they come from some sort of fairy tale – similar to the creativity of Sigur Ros – and really it’s no wonder that they manage to produce such an uplifting yet fragile sound just from watching them perform.

Signing off with the stunning ‘Opposites Attract’, they have turned many unsuspecting heads tonight, and have proved why they are one of the most exciting and unique bands in music today.

But everyone was here to see the mighty Appleseed, one of the most respected and loved independent bands and straight away proved just why with ‘Woodland Hunter part I’; one of the strongest tracks from the new album. This anthem-in-the-making proving to be an excellent set-opener, drawing the crowd in instantly with the explosive crescendo after a minute and a half intro of just vocalist and guitarist Christopher Crisci. And, like their predecessors, keep a wonderful energy and aura about their set from beginning to end.

However, a major part of this set – arguably too much – is taken from new album ‘Peregrine’ – an album that has received average feedback. Luckily though, AC are so successful as a live act, that they make the new album sound very enjoyable, the best example probably being ‘Sunlit and Ascending’ a track that on record doesn’t touch the fantastic energy they manage to exhibit it with here. Which is a shame, because hearing it live really exposes what a fantastically constructed song it is, with it’s wonderfully uplifting chorus and fantastically rhythm laden verses, showing just how talented Richardson is as a drummer.

The problem though, is that the majority of the crowd have loved the band for quite sometimes, and it is disappointing for them to find very little play time from the first three albums – ‘Mare Vitals’ and ‘Low Level Owl’ particularly – is played. Still, what is featured from earlier work, like ‘Steps and Numbers’ and the crowd-pleasing anthem ‘Fight Song’ with its incredibly catchy chorus “This is the end, it’s nothing cute, this is the end of you and me.”

And finishing on brilliant, dramatic instrumental track ‘The Clock and the Storm’, Appleseed prove they are still one of the most exciting, refreshing and charming live acts out there, even if the material itself has become slightly lacklustre now, and literally left the audience screaming for more (which surely proves a really excellent live act given that ability). And thus, this was the perfect summer show, despite what the British weather tries to tell you.

Words: Adam Turner-Heffer
Photos: Stacy Liu